Slayers EPIC
by SalixDryad
Summary: Amelia has recently aquired a few image changes that have gotten the attention of several dark lords. What is the plan that the Mazoku Lords have for her and the rest of the world?


_"Light and dark, one cannot exist without the other. Each creature has these vastly different features in them. They have the capacity to do both good and evil, regardless of what you are. There is a balance to each creature; the light feeds off of the dark, and the dark off of the light. You can choose one or the other to serve, but you can never get rid of the other half. We exist therefore we are both. Light and darkness."  
_

_ - Rei Magnus "Excerpt from his journal"  
_  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Amelia laughed as she ran away from Lina, she waved the piece of stolen bread in the air taunting Lina playfully. "Can't catch me!"   
  


Lina shrieked and dived for Amelia. "Give it back!" Fuming she missed as the princess danced out of her way, taunting her some more.   
  


Amelia broke a piece off of the loaf and turned to throw it at the petite girl glaring at her from the ground when she felt the pain of death. She dropped the bread and fell the ground clutching her hands over her head trying to block out the emotions.  
  


Lina grabbed the bread before it hit the ground; she dusted her pants off and prepared to yell at Amelia when she got a good look at the princess' face. "Amelia?"   
  


Amelia raised her raven head and gave the worried girl a weary smile. "I'm okay Lina, but we have to help the people!"  
  


"What people?" Asked the chimera who had just caught up with the pair.   
  


"The people who are being attacked. We have to!"   
  


Lina shrugged at Zelgadis and turned back to Amelia. "What people Amelia? There's no one around…" The sorceress trailed off as she spotted the plumes of smoke floating up from deeper in the forest.   
  


Amelia's voice took on a hysterical edge as she stood up and started to run down the road. "Those people!"   
  


Gourry blinked at the retreating princess. "Where's Amelia going?"   
  


Lina sighed and smacked Gourry upside the head. "Shut up and let's go!"  
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Amelia's eyes widened in horror when she reached the ravaged merchant's caravan, the wagons were burning and the clearing was scattered with dying humans, dead animals, and wrecked goods. She ran over to a small girl who was buried half under a carton of clothing; with trembling hands she pulled the girl free and cradled her in her lap. The little girl's pain and fear swept over Amelia in waves and she had to stop the small shiver of happiness that came over her at the emotions. Amelia closed her eyes in revulsion at her delight in suffering, shuddering she tried to block out the feeling of the girl's death. _'No I don't want to be this way…please…'   
_  


"Amelia…" Lina knelt down besides the distraught girl. "She's dead Amelia, you can't do anything…"  
  


Amelia dropped the little girl's body and scooted back, wiping her hands on her tunic in disgust at herself. She felt Lina's hand on her shoulder; she pushed it off before she could take delight in the red head's sorrow. "I'm okay…" She wrapped her arms around herself and stood up. "We should probably bury them."   
  


Lina blinked in mild surprise, she had expected that line from Zelgadis but from Amelia it was surprising. She watched Amelia walk off to find somewhere to lay the bodies to rest, worry radiating from her expression.   
  


"Where's Amelia going?"   
  


Lina turned her head and looked at Zelgadis. "To find a place to bury the bodies, come on let's prepare them."   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Lina sighed softly as she watched Amelia finish giving the people of the caravan burial rights. Her anger simmered deeply at the plight of these people, they had heard of bandits in this area of the country but until now she hadn't heard of them killing anyone. She took a step forward and touched Amelia's shoulder gently. "If we're going to find the bandits we need to leave now before the trail gets cold."   
  


Amelia nodded and followed silently Lina back to the site of the murders. They all spread out to search for signs of where they had come from; Amelia spotted a deer trail that looked freshly trampled. "Lina san! I found it!" She pointed to the deer trail as everyone gathered around her. "It's got fresh footprints on it."  
  


Zelgadis pushed the brush back and looked at the footprints. "She's right, these are fresh." He stood. "Let's go."  
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Juuou smiled triumphantly, she had located the general area of the disturbance. Something was messing with the waves of power in the world, and it had been annoying her that she couldn't pinpoint the reason; now she knew that the disturbance had generated from the group of her favorite little sorceress, and now she wanted to know what was causing it and if she could make use of it. Making a small gesture she summoned her crystal ball into her hands. "I want to speak to Xelloss." The small globe turned cloudy for a moment before revealing a slightly annoyed Xelloss. "Did I interrupt something?"   
  


Xelloss immediately brightened his smile and shook his head. "Of course not Juuou sama, what can I do for you?"  
  


The Beastmaster grinned as she happily began her favorite sport, annoying her priest. "Delightful choice of clothing Xell chan."   
  


Eyebrow twitch. "I was sleeping Zellas."   
  


"Really I wasn't aware that you actually slept." She curled a piece of hair around her finger idly as she smiled at him. "Any interesting dreams?"   
  


Eyebrow twitch. "Mazoku don't dream Zellas."   
  


"Sama, you forgot the sama."   
  


Eyebrow twitch. "Zellas sama."   
  


She smiled happily. "Much better."   
  


Eyebrow twitch. "Was there something you want Juuou sama?"  
  


"Oh yes, there's a ripple coming from someone or something in Lina's possession. I want you to find out what it is and then bring it to me."   
  


Xelloss smiled genuinely for the first time during the session. "Sounds fun." He smiled evilly for a moment. "Oh by the way Zellas sama your lava has stopped flowing." He gleefully turned the crystal ball off as her curses echoed throughout the room. He stretched languidly as he smiled at the thought of annoying Lina again; oh yes this was going to be fun.   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Kaiou, also known as Deep Sea Dolphin, sat in her lush throne her attention fixed on the small crystal ball she held her in her hand. She watched the ball give her images; the first was of a petite red head girl who was currently making several bandits very sorry for existing. She waved her hand slightly and the ball focused upon another girl, her raven hair reached her knees and her fingers danced as she cast Puppet and then set the bandits to kill each other. "Yes." She purred softly as she caressed the crystal. "She's perfect." Frowning slightly she waved her hand and the ball focused upon a cheerfully smiling Xelloss. "Zellas' priest bitch, what is he doing there?" She murmured to herself. Then it struck her, she knew exactly why he was there, but she had to wonder if Xelloss knew why he was there. "Time to pay a visit to an old friend…"   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Juuou's eyebrow began to twitch as she glared at the smiling woman in front of her. "Why Dolphin, what are you doing here?" She waved her hand slightly and another teacup appeared across the table. "I was just sitting down to tea…"  
  


Kaiou smiled sweetly and gracefully took a seat at the table. She picked up the teacup and examined it curiously. "What darling tea cups." She said in a sweetly condescending tone. "One lump of sugar please."   
  


Eyebrow twitch. "Of course." Juuou carefully poured Dolphin tea and then added a lump of sugar. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"   
  


Dolphin tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and took a dainty sip of her tea. "Well I happened upon your priest while gazing at my crystal ball." She gave Juuou a bright smile. "Lovely creature you created."   
  


The blonde tossed her hair over her shoulder and gave Kaiou a wicked smile. "Isn't he though?"   
  


Kaiou smothered a grin in her teacup, after composing herself she looked at preening blonde. "Ah so that's why you created him, you know Dynast and I had wondered."  
  


Zellas kept a smile on her face and tried to restrain the urge to wrap her fingers around Kaiou's neck and squeeze the life out of her. "Oh you've seen Dynast recently?"  
  


Kaiou let out a silvery laugh and sat her teacup down. "Oh not for a few hundred years, he drops in occasionally."   
  


"I had wondered where you had gotten to, last time I heard you had lost your mind." Juuou smiled sweetly at the raven-haired woman.  
  


"Oh that?" Kaiou giggled again. "No, your priest just visited one day and you have to admit he does make one want to wrap their fingers around his neck and squeeze the life out of him."   
  


"Really? I find he's quite easy to deal with if you know how to handle men."   
  


Eyebrow twitch. "Is that why he's dying to get into Lina's bed?"  
  


Juuou smiled triumphantly. "I'm not sure who he's sleeping with, he gets tired of his toys so easily. Pity they break just as easily."   
  


Dolphin smiled sweetly. "What are you going to do when he finds one he wants to keep?"   
  


"Won't happen, he's very fickle."   
  


"I wonder if he knows what he's supposed to be searching for…" Kaiou gave the Beastmaster a bright smile. "It'll be a pity if he doesn't find it first."   
  


Juuou sat her teacup down and gazed at Dolphin impassively. "He always was a smart mazoku, I'm sure he'll find what he needs to."   
  


"He's searching for the source of that ripple isn't he?"  
  


Juuou sat silently and tried to keep herself from killing the annoying woman.   
  


Kaiou laughed softly. "Oh come now, like you're the only one who has felt it; but I'm sure you're the only one who doesn't know what it is. You must be loosing your power."   
  


Eyebrow twitch.   
  


"Pity you haven't found out the source, you were always one step behind me." Kaiou grinned as the blonde woman started to lunge for her. "Pity I must be going now, wonderful tea. Ta ta!" Dolphin laughed cheerfully and waggled her fingers at the fuming blonde as she faded out of site.   
  


Juuou growled as her hands curled into claws. Oh how she hated that woman, hated with a burning passion. "Damn her."   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Xelloss floated down from the tree and threaded his way around the bodies and through the main building to the treasure room of the bandit's lair. He grinned at the four people searching through the gold and artifacts.  
  


"I found something!" Amelia shouted as she held up a book.   
  


The mazoku phased out of site and appeared behind the group of people clustered around the excited princess. They were all looking at an old book; he made a note to look at it later. He decided he should probably announce his presence, so he took a step back and started to clap. "Wonderful show of skill princess, I didn't know you could do that with that spell."   
  


Amelia shivered as she looked up at the smiling Mazoku. "Hello Xelloss san." She murmured softly as she clutched the book to her chest. "What brings you here?"   
  


He leaned down and smiles secretively. "Sore wa himitsu desu."   
  


Lina groaned and dropped her head into her hands. This was not good, not good at all.   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Amelia gazed at herself in the mirror, the candlelight reflected against her features, making her seem almost vampiric in nature. Her jet-black hair had tints of purple in it, and it added to the paleness of her skin, giving it an unearthly glow. Normally, the glow of candlelight gave warmness to human's skin, making them seem even more alive than they are, but for one such as she nothing could warm her skin. Casting one last poignant look into the mirror, she reached out and smothered the candle with her hand.   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Amelia sat quietly this morning, her usually vigor for the delicious foods of her world was not present. She sat off to one side, her eyes filled with worry that the others of the slayers group did not often see. She rested her hands on her lap, finger intertwined, as she gazed out the window of the tavern her eyes unseeing.   
  


The others cast her a curious look at her before ripping into their food happily. The food of this town was delicious, it was especially well known for its breakfast foods. Sausages, bacon, ham, pancakes, toast, waffles, and more were spread over the table in a feast of aromas. Patrons of the tavern watched in awe as the two bottomless pits, Lina and Gourry, devoured the food in moments and then order another round.   
  


Lina paused in ripped at a bacon piece and looked around curiously. "Where's Xelloss, I haven't seen him around all morning."   
  


"He's probably off doing evil things."   
  


The fiery redhead shrugged at Zelgadis and went back to devouring her meal.   
  


Zelgadis stired his coffee absently as he once again buried himself in his thoughts, his depression came earlier than usual this morning. They had just reached the town two nights before, and again they came up with nothing. The clue they had gotten from the ancient magi's journal was nothing but a farce; they had found it while Lina was cleaning out a bandit's lair. Zelgadis had been counting some coins when Amelia had shouted from the other side of the room, she had found old leather bound book with ancient writing in it. It had taken a few days to translate it, but Amelia had finally finished. The entire group had been more than a little shocked to find that Amelia knew the ancient language.   
  


Amelia had blushed and smiled a faint secretive smile when they asked her about it. "I'm a priestess and we're supposed to learn all the languages known in the world."   
  


The chimera's thoughts took another slight turn as he contemplated Amelia's behavior in the past few months. At first she slowed her justice speeches, but now they had come back with a vengeance; they were harsh. She no longer waited for the police to give out justice; usually she hurt them badly before handing them over to the authorities. He had also noticed that she had finally grown taller than Lina, and not that he would admit to it, he also noticed that she had become slimmer, her body more trim. Her attacks had also increased in power, when they attacked the bandits she had a small smile on her face as she killed several of them. That had truly surprised him, usually she didn't like attacking bandits; it went against her justice kick, but he had seen the look on her face and it worried him.   
  


"Zelgadis san, what is the difference between light and dark?"  
  


Startled out of his thoughts the surprised chimera looked at the quiet princess; he arched an eyebrow as he answered. "Light is good, dark is evil."   
  


A strangely poignant smile danced across Amelia's pale face. "Ah I see." She said with a soft finality to it.   
  


Troubled by her reaction he leaned forwards slightly to inquire as to where the question has sprouted.   
  


The delicate princess gave a small shrug, her mouth tilted into a secretive smile. "Where does anything come from?" And with that she gracefully rose from the seat and joined the others for what was left of the food.  
  


His eyebrows creased into a frown as he gazed at her thoughtfully. He settled again into his turbulent thoughts, his mind returning once again to Amelia's strange behavior.   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Xelloss watched the group as they stood in the middle of the town square as they decided what to do today. A smile spread over his face, time for a little fun. He thought as he phased in behind Lina. "Yare yare Lina san, what are you going to do for Amelia san's birthday?"  
  


Lina shrieked in surprised and promptly beat the mazoku into the ground. "Baka! Don't scare me like that!" The petite sorceress paused in the middle of her fit and turned to look at Amelia with a hurt look in her eyes. "It's your birthday and you didn't tell us?"   
  


"Ano Lina san it's not really that important." Amelia smiled weakly as she raised her hands in an attempt to placate Lina.   
  


The fiery girl completely missed Amelia's pleading tone; she rubbed her hands together and smiled brightly as she began planning the party. "We'll need presents, and a party room and naturally a cake."   
  


Gourry began to drool at the mention of food; he and Lina went off into their fantasies about the cake.  
  


"…and it'll have five tiers…."   
  


Amelia dropped her head into her hands and sighed softly. She could feel it coming, it was like a rushing river, and the signs had been there for months now. Once this day was over she would no longer be able to hide her secret. The moment she dreaded was fast approaching; the spell that held her heritage back would end at sundown.   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Xelloss watched the emotions flow over Amelia's face, she emanated pain, fear and uncertainty, and he drank it all up hungrily. A cruel smile played with his lips, he knew very well this was the day that her mother had died, he also knew that was why in all their years of traveling the princess had never told anyone about it. She obviously hated to be reminded of her mother's death. He watched as she slipped away from the group. _'Running away my little princess?' _He giggled gleefully and phased out again so he could follow her unseen. _'I don't think so.'   
_  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Amelia waited for everyone to turn away before she slipped away from the group, her relief to be away shone on her face. She wandered through the town, not really paying attention to the beautiful buildings; her mind was on tonight. Eventually she reached the outskirt of town, she paused for a moment, and she looked like a bird on the edge of flight. Making up her mind she raced away from the town, she reveled in the feeling of the air passing against her skin. After about an hour of travel she reached the hot springs; she looked around to make sure no one could see her before shedding her clothing and leaving them in a pile on a boulder.   
  


The hot springs gave off a cloud of steam, making the world around her seem secluded. One could not really see the hot springs until they came upon them. The steaming pools were surrounded by large boulders, which hid them from sight of the world. There were small paths that lead to the springs; the small trails could only fit one person at a time. So with assurance that no one would see her she slipped into the pool of water. The water was heavenly; it clung to her skin making her glow like a jewel in the sunlight. Raising her arms over her head she arched her back, stretching her muscles so they would loosen in the warm waters. After the water relaxed her, she eventually gave into her second impulse and went to frolic in the pool like a water sprite. Her mind shoved at the over half of herself, trying to push it back so she could forget about it for one day; it almost succeeded, but she could never quite forget.   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  
  


Xelloss watched Amelia from a near by boulder; he was just hidden from her sight, but his placement among the rocks gave him a perfect view of her. He felt a familiar twinge of lust as he watched her undress, her movements slow and delicate. Her uncertainty radiated from her in waves, he feasted upon it hungrily. Fear and anger were lovely, but uncertainty was like a delicious sweet treat for mazoku. His lips curved into a smile as he surveyed her; his roving eyes came onto a mark on her hip. Surprised that he had never noticed it he looked at it closer; it was small and black, in the shape of wings. Wondering why the princess would get such an ominous mark put on her hip he decided to question her about it; although the princess did not trust him she was usually truthful about anything asked of her.   


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Amelia paused in her playful frolicking and gazed up at the sky, the clouds that danced around the sky were a deep blood red, signaling that the sun was on its last leg of decent. Smiling ruefully she stood and walked from the pool; her sadness turned to anger as she saw a brightly smiling Xelloss offering her a towel. She took the offered towel and wrapped it around her naked flesh; his eyes watched every movement, making her shudder in disgust. "What do you want?"   
  


The ice in her voice made him smile bigger, his eyes were open for once, giving her a full view of his mazoku identity. "Now, now Ame-chan, be nice."   
  


"I have to go, the sun is almost set."   
  


His smirk turned curious at the urgency in her voice, was it he making her nervous or something else? "And why is that?"   
  


Amelia looked into his eyes, the cat like eyes that seemed so cold were undeniable proof that he was a demon. They made her body turn to ice as he stared at her. Pasting a cold look on her face she answered softly. "Sore wa himitsu desu."   
  


Xelloss almost laughed in delight as she caught him off guard. "That's my line Ame-chan."   
  


Amelia gave a hollow laugh, turning her head slightly she watched as the suns rays disappeared and gave way to the night. The mark on her hip started to glow brightly and the princess let out a mournful wail as she fell to the ground in pain. She wrapped her arms around herself as the shudders of pain and power coursed through her body, slowly the pupils of her deep sapphire eyes elongated, turning into cat's eyes. The skin on her back rippled as the spell disappeared in a burst of blinding light.   
  


The startled mazoku shielded his eyes from the light, his vision slowly returned to him as the light faded. He blinked his eyes several times and he finally looked up at the delicate girl before him. He lost all composure as he looked at the sight in front of him.   
  


Wings, large and black graced her back. Black feathers danced around her naked body, the towel having fallen off as the wings pushed themselves out of her back. Smiling evilly the look on her face, she caught a black feather in her hand; her voice was soft as she looked at him with mazoku eyes. "Shocked?"   
  


Xelloss got control of his face again and pasted a smile on it; arching an eyebrow at her question he answered ruefully. "You could say that." A thousand questions ran through his mind, but one was foremost. How had he missed this?   
  


"We have much to talk about, ne Xelloss?"   
  


The mazoku laughed softly and nodded his head; the change in her speech pattern did not go unnoticed by him. So in amused tones he answered softly. "Hai."  
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Lina frowned as she paced in front of the inn that the group was staying at. A man glared at her, as he had to sidestep to get into the bar that accompanied the inn. She spared nary a glance at the man as she mumbled in worried tones. "Where is she?"   
  


Gourry looked up from his place against the wall where he was resting. "Maybe she went swimming." He answered in a cheerfully inane voice.  
  


Lina snorted at the swordsman and he received a smack. "Sure a swim, baka! There aren't any lakes around here!"   
  


"Actually there are some hot springs outside of town."   
  


The frustrated girl looked up to see Zelgadis standing in front of her. "And where did you get off to?" She shook her head. "Never mind, let's go look for her."   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


"These are her clothes but I don't see her." Lina paced around the pool in frustration. Worry etched her features as she looked for an excuse to take out her anger on someone. Gourry promptly gave her one.  
  


"Oi, Lina, where'd all these feathers come from?" Gourry asked with a guileless wonder. He turned to see Lina descending upon him in a fury. "Ano…Lina why are you glowing?"  
  


Smack.   
  


"Baka! How should I know where the feathers came from!"   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Juuou-sama, also known as Zellas Mettalium and Beastmaster gazed in amusement at the girl standing in front of her. The girl did not seem amused to be here, and even less amused at the state of her body, which held no covering at all. A fleeting though passed through her mind, the girl looked like an icy angel; standing there naked with wings; a smirk covered her face as she bit back a laugh. Absurd, this girl was no angel, her eyes gave her away, and she was mazoku. "So this is the princess of justice?" The question was directed to her priest and general, Xelloss Mettalium.   
  


"Hai my lady, she's recently had a few…image changes."   
  


Juuou snorted in amusement. "So I can see, lovely child. Leave us." Beastmaster waved a bejeweled hand at her priest, dismissing him. She smiled inwardly at the look of annoyance on his face; she turned her attention back to the coldly glaring girl. "Lovely wings."   
  


Amelia smothered the annoyance inside of her and gave the Beastmaster no answer but a cold stare.  
  


Ignoring the look, Zellas smiled cheerfully. "You're just radiating depression and annoyance, it's a fabulous meal."   
  


The princess stayed silent.  
  


Juuou waved a hand and some filmy gauze that resembled Greek clothing appeared before the girl. "Put these on, you'll feel more comfortable."   
  


"Thank you."   
  


"Now that wasn't too hard was it?" A feral grin spread over Juuou's face. "Care the let me know how you just became mazoku?"   
  


Amelia, now clothed, well kind of, gazed at Zellas impassively. "Sore wa himitsu desu."   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Xelloss started suddenly at the sound of his mistress' laughter. He let out a barely audible growl of annoyance, he had had enough shocks for his liking today and his mistress' laughter was one of the more annoying ones.   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Lina shrieked in frustration as their searches turned up nothing but discarded clothing and feathers.  
  


Gourry sat grumbling next to her at a table in the inn's dining room. "I still want to know where those feathers came from."   
  


The small girl cast a glare at Gourry before returning to her raving. "Where is that girl?! She had no right to disappear! Arrg!"   
  


Zelgadis gave her a stoic look, that didn't betray his inner worries. The longer the princess was gone the worse it became. "I think we need to worry about who took her."   
  


Lina looked at the chimera. "She's a sorceress, you can't kidnap us easily!"   
  


Gourry muttered another inane comment and Lina pounced on him, the two degenerated into a fight.  
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


A dark figure traveled quickly along the road leading to town, she had known it was coming and had been searching for the person for a several months. She had come upon nothing but rumors and signs that she had been there but had now left. However the last place she passed was a burning heap of what seemed to have been a bandit's hideout, which was the clue she needed so she had set off on the trail with glee and a bit of worry. Nevertheless, she had reached her destination and with asking around she discovered that the girl she wanted was staying at the inn that she was standing in front of. With a bit of trepidation she stepped into the inn, her eyes alighted upon a table at which sat the group she was looking for. She had found them, her joy was overwhelming and she let out a horrible laugh.  
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


The patrons of the inn shuddered at the sound and ran out of the room leaving only a single group sitting at a table staring at the dark figure in horror.   
  


"No, it can't be."   
  


"Yes, but it is." The girl let out another laugh, which made every cringe as she took off her cloak, and sat down at the table. "Long time no see Lina."  
  


Lina smiled weakly. "Naga, how nice to see you. I didn't know you were in these parts."   
  


Naga grinned at Lina's discomfort; she knew the girl was always annoyed with her or embarrassed at her drinking habits. She also did that on purpose, for it was a delicious meal, and Naga loved to annoy people so she acted deliciously blind to everything in order to get away with it. She looked around the table, frowning as she saw the one person she was looking for was missing. "Don't you usually have one more person in this group?"   
  


Lina's face fell into worry. "She's missing, we haven't been able to find her." The girl looked at Naga as her face fell into a serious frown. Her entire manner had changed in that moment and Lina suddenly had the feeling that there was something Naga had not let her in on for as long as she knew her. "Naga, what's wrong?"   
  


"We have to find Amelia, it's urgent."   
  


The group blinked at the seriousness of Naga's tone.   
  


Naga sighed and rubbed her head, she knew her personality would come back to haunt her. They obviously were shocked and the chimera one didn't trust her.   
  


"How did you know her name, she wasn't with us last time we met." Zelgadis asked in a tone of distrust.   
  


"She and I have known each other for a very long time." The raven-haired woman said sadly. "But that's not important, we've got to find her, tonight." Naga paused thoughtfully and looked around. "Where's Xelloss?"   
  


Lina blinked again, she hadn't known that Naga knew Xelloss. Last time the group had run into her Xelloss had been off somewhere and Amelia had been at her father's castle for a visit. "We don't know, probably off annoying someone."   
  


A thoughtful look overcame Naga's face, she knew that the mazoku would not pause to grab onto Amelia if he had seen the breaking of the girl's spell. She also knew that Amelia had to have been acting differently lately, and probably had been incredibly depressed. Poor Amelia, the anniversary of her mother's death and turning mazoku on the same night must have been very hard for her. Naga looked at everyone's face and decided to let a little bit of information slip. "We've got to get my sister away from Xelloss."   
  


Looks of shock again came over everyone's face.   
  


Lina raised a hand and pointed at Naga. "You're…Amelia's…sister?!" Her voice wavered at the thought and she tried to keep herself from screaming at Naga for never telling her.  
  


Naga tried to keep the smile from her face as she felt everyone's shock and disbelief. "Yes I'm her older sister, and trust me we've got to find her tonight." She tapped a finger against her chin as she thought. "Where was the last place my sister was?"   
  


"Right here." A soft voice answered.  


Everyone turned to see Amelia standing in the doorway with Xelloss standing behind her a smirk dancing on his face.   
  


Naga frowned at Xelloss and she let herself radiate displeasure at him being there. She let a smile spread over her face as Xelloss recognized what she was. So let the priest be annoyed with another shock tonight.   
  


Amelia pulled the cloak tighter to her body as she looked at everyone. "Tadaima." She carefully dodged Lina's attempt to give her a bone crushing hug and walked over to Naga. "Hello Gracia."   
  


Naga smiled again at the look on everyone's face. "Hello Amelia."   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Juuou sat on her throne, a finger tapping against the arm of it as she thought. The girl could be of great use to her; she practically radiated power, both light and dark. Such a creature could be use in many ways, but even after the interview Juuou didn't know how a princess and a priestess of light had become half mazoku. She growled in frustration and snapped the neck of a servant who had been stupid enough to interrupt her thought process. The rest of her minions fled the room and left her alone, they didn't like the feral smile that spread over their mistress' face as she phased out of sight.   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Everyone sat down at the table as they waited expectantly for an explanation. After a long silence Lina finally got fed up.   
  


"Amelia! Where were you? What happened to you? And why are you wearing clothes like that?"  
  


"And what's with the cloak?"   
  


Everyone turned to look at Gourry.   
  


"What?"   
  


Lina smacked him and returned to questioning the princess. "Amelia what happened to you?"   
  


Amelia looked at Lina's worried face and tried to ignore the anger and worry coming from the girl. _'I will not feed, I will not feed.'_ She told herself as she gave a small smile. "I think I'd like to rest."   
  


Lina looked as if she might reach out and throttle the girl at any moment so Naga stood and helped Amelia up. "I think that might be a good idea, come on, and show me your room."   
  


Amelia looked back at the group as she led Naga up the stairs to her room, everyone but Xelloss looked annoyed, even Gourry. Though that was probably at Lina for hitting him. She cringed as Xelloss winked at her then phased out of sight. She led Naga into her room and sat on the bed, pulling the cloak to her like a blanket.   
  


"It happened didn't it Amelia."   
  


Amelia broke at the soft caring sound of her sister's voice, the feelings that she had been holding in all her life poured out as she burst into sobs. She felt herself being pulled into Naga's lap, the comforting embrace welcome as she shed all her life's worries.  
  


Naga sighed softly and rocked Amelia gently until the girl's sobs subsided. She gently cleaned her baby sister's face with a silk cloth. She tilted her sister's head up so she could get a good look at her eyes. She nodded once in understanding as she saw they were no longer human. She kept a tight reign on herself as she felt Amelia's emotions wash over her, she would not feed from her sister. So in a soft voice she asked. "Would you like me to show you how to hide your wings?"  
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Juuou sat in a comfortable looking chair with a glass of tea in her hand. She gave a fond smile to the girl sitting in front of her as she explained what had happened. "And so I need to know how this came to be."   
  


Luna smiled to herself as she sipped her tea. "The girl wouldn't tell you would she?"   
  


Juuou's eyebrow twitched slightly. "No she wouldn't."   
  


The purple-haired girl laughed as she sat her teacup down on the table. "And you want me to find out how?"  
  


The blonde woman gave Luna her best charming smile. "It would help a great deal."   
  


"Mmm.." she responded as her face took on the blank look it always did when she was listening.  
  


Juuou snorted in annoyance and once again had a feeling that she wasn't going to like what she was going to be told. Damn Cefied and his annoying habit for light.   
  


Luna's face took on a small smile as she looked at her friend. She knew she was already annoyed and her answer would probably piss off the Beastmaster. "Wait till tomorrow and you'll find out through your priest."   
  


Yes she definitely didn't like that answer. Juuou's eyebrow twitched again as she sighed. "I figured as much, the dragon doesn't want you to tell me ne?"   
  


A laugh echoed through the room. "You could say that, but you serve your master I serve mine. More tea?"   
  


Juuou sighed and held out her teacup. "Why not?"  
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  
  


Amelia woke up to find herself curled against her sister, a smile spread over her face as the past came back to her. She could remember being a little girl and curling up with her sister in bed during a thunderstorm. She always pretended to be afraid of them because that's what her father thought, but truthfully they excited her. She knew that they excited Gracia also, so the two had always shared thunderstorms together. The delicate princess missed that. She giggled and poked at Gracia. "Wake up, it's morning."   
  


Naga groaned and smacked at Amelia's hand. "Go away." She mumbled incoherently as she rolled over. She settled back into sleep only to find that her face was being covered and her air supply cut off. Sitting up with a shriek she took huge breaths. "Amelia…"   
  


Amelia innocently smiled at her. "Good morning."   
  


The annoyed woman pushed the hair out of her face and got up to get dressed; she found Amelia's clothes sitting on top of the dresser. "Looks like someone left your clothes in here."   
  


Frowning, Amelia backed away from the offered clothes. "I don't want to wear those, they're filled with good and light. I'm not good enough for them."   
  


Sighing at her sisters belief she put the clothes away and rummaged through her pack. She soon found what she was looking for; she pulled the sundress out and shook it. Naga laughed softly at Amelia's look of shock. "You don't always think I wear this bikini do you?" Her face fell slightly. "I've gotten over mother's death."   
  


Amelia gingerly took the offered sundress and looked at it. It was a beautiful shade of red; it would go with her hair wonderfully. Secretly she was happy it wasn't black or white, she didn't think she could deal with that. Suddenly she looked at Naga in shock. "Gracia! It's red, you hate red!"   
  


Naga smiled and hugged her sister. "I told you, I'm over mothers death, red doesn't bother me anymore. I've had a lot of time to think." She tapped Amelia's nose playfully. "And not a mention about the laugh, I know you're thinking it. I only use that laugh in public to annoy everyone and to clear rooms."   
  


A giggle echoed throughout the room. "Sounds like you." Amelia slipped the dress on over her head and looked at herself in the mirror. No sign of wings, she was eternally grateful to Gracia for showing her how to hide them, she didn't think the group would take well to them. They were going to have enough of a problem with her eyes. She was now glad they hadn't gotten a good look at them last night or she would have been forced to explain. She took a deep breath and opened the door. "Come on, let's go down stairs."   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


"I want you to find out how this happened Xelloss."   
  


"Hai Juuou-sama."   
  


"And don't do anything with her till I decided what to do with her."   
  


"Hai Juuou-sama."   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


Amelia and Naga came down to the dining room just as everyone was finished with breakfast. Everyone turned to look at them as they came down.   
  


Lina looked at them, and now as she saw them together in the daylight she could tell the little signs that showed them as sisters. The hair was the same shade, their faces were the same shape, and their eyes were the same. Lina stopped in shock and looked at their eyes. "Amelia! Your eyes!!"   
  


Amelia winced at Lina's shout, she had hoped to have time to prepare herself for explaining but it looks like she wouldn't. "Umm…good morning?"   
  


Naga smothered a giggle and pushed Amelia down the stairs. She gave her a comforting squeeze on the arm and then sat down at the table. She blinked as Lina turned to her and promptly asked her about her eyes also. "Ano…"   
  


Xelloss cheerfully drank in his breakfast as he sipped at his coffee. "Didn't you know Lina-chan? They're Mazoku!"   
  


The group stared at Xelloss in shock, and then they turned their attention to the sisters sitting uncomfortably at the table. "You're what?!" they asked in unison.  
  


Amelia nibbled at a piece of her hair nervously. "Well you see…it goes like this."   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  


"Ah so her mother was Mazoku."   
  


"Hai. Juuou-sama, her father had a spell put on the Amelia and Naga until they turned 20, at which time it would wear off and their heritage would show through."  
  


"That explains how you never noticed."  
  


Eyebrow twitch. "Hai Juuou-sama." He kept his other eyebrow from twitching by only will power as he brightened his slipping smile.   
  


The blonde woman tapped a fingernail against the arm of her throne thoughtfully. "How did Naga learn to hide her wings and her eyes?"   
  


"I'm not sure actually, perhaps Naga's mother told her how to do it."   
  


Juuou's eyebrows creased in concentration. "I don't think so, the spell would have to be practiced; and the spell keeping the mazoku half back was still in affect when Naga ran away."   
  


"So it was, would you like me to find out how she learned?"  
  


Juuou smiled sweetly at Xelloss. "Would you be a dear and do just that?" She paused thoughtfully and then continued in a honey sweet voice. "And do refrain from stopping by Dolphin's place in the future; she's annoying to deal with and I don't want to have to patch you back together if you go to far and she attacks you."   
  


"Of course Juuou sama."   
  


The Beastmaster laughed and leaned forward to pat her priest's cheek. "Now be a good boy and run along."   
  


Eyebrow twitch. "Naturally Zellas."   
  


Juuou grinned at Xelloss' reaction; she loved getting to him like this. "Find out who her mother worked for." The Beastmaster gleefully rubbed her hands together; this was going to be fun. She paused again and gave Xelloss a feral smile before he phased out of site. "And don't forget the sama next time."   
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  
  
  
  



End file.
